Many thanks to conference coordinators Mike and Amy Baer for putting together this great weekend! Are you a geoscience educator? Check out NAGT for their resources, webinars, professional development, conferences, and especially for the camaraderie of your fellow educators.
Now, put on your rainy weather gear as we embark on two fun and informative fieldtrips in the area.
Sharon Lyon
Editor, GeoLifestyle
Presque Isle State Park, Erie, Pennsylvania
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Presque Isle State Park comprises 3,200 acres on a sandy peninsula protruding into Lake Erie. The neck of the peninsula creates Presque Isle Bay, a deep harbor for the city of Erie.
Its name (pronounced ‘Presk’) is derived from the French word presqu'île, meaning “almost an island.” The park has been a real island at least four times since 1819 when storm waves broke through the neck of the peninsula.
History: The Erie Indians lived along the southern shores of Lake Erie and were early inhabitants of the area.
During the War of 1812, the shores and waters of Presque Isle protected Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry’s fleet during construction in Erie. Commodore Perry and his men defeated the British near Sandusky, Ohio, in the Battle of Lake Erie. The Perry Monument on Crystal Point commemorates this significant battle.
Geology: Rivers and glaciers carved the Lake Erie Basin between 1 million and 12,600 years ago. Multiple glaciations changed the size and shape of the lake, and there are well-developed beach ridges from precursors many miles from the lake’s current position.
Presque Isle peninsula is a moraine of clay, sand, and gravel, left behind after the last glacial period when the Laurentide Ice Sheet retreated north.
Wave action constantly reworks the sediments, and they migrate northeast due to longshore drift. Concrete seawalls, perpendicular groins, and a series of breakwaters have been constructed to combat the erosion. Even with these measures, beach nourishment is needed every year.
Ecology: There are six ecological zones within Presque Isle State Park: Lake Erie, its bay, and shoreline; sandy plain and new ponds; dunes and ridges; marshes and old ponds; thicket and sub-climax forest; and climax forest.
Birds are the most studied animals in the park, which is located along the Atlantic Flyway. Migrating birds rest, feed, and nest there. More than 339 species of birds have been recorded, including 47 species of special concern.
Travel tips:
Stop by the Tom Ridge Environmental Center at the park entrance. The center houses interactive educational exhibits, a “Discovery Center,” classrooms, and research laboratories.
Be sure to climb the observation tower for a view of the landscape.
Then, drive the 14-mile road, pulling off to observe the wildlife as you feel inspired. Don’t miss the turtle pond.
Walk to the end of the pier to the North Pier Light, built in 1858. Make sure to slow down to investigate the invasive zebra mussels on the pilings.
Fun fact: The park was in the path of totality for the April 8, 2024 solar eclipse, experiencing 3 minutes and 45 seconds of totality.
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Penn Dixie Fossil Park & Nature Preserve, New York
Fossil hunting at Penn Dixie Fossil Park & Nature Reserve
Penn Dixie Fossil Park & Nature Reserve is a 54-acre park, where visitors can pay to collect Devonian fossils. Located on the site of a former cement quarry in Hamburg, New York, the park holds the Guinness World Record for the world’s largest fossil dig.
History of Penn Dixie:
In the early 1950s, the park was a cement quarry. Workers removed the calcareous surface layers, then they crushed, and transported them to be processed into cement.
In 1980, Penn Dixie Cement Co. filed for bankruptcy and abandoned the property.
In 1993, when development threatened to turn the quarry into a waste transfer station, a group of local activists formed the Hamburg Natural History Society, successfully lobbying the Town of Hamburg to purchase the land and donate it to the society. The society agreed to remove accumulated waste and to develop the property so that it could become a unique destination for science education and tourism.
Today, around 18,000 visitors come to Penn Dixie Fossil Park & Nature Reserve every year to learn about the local geology and collect fossils.
Geology: Fossils collected from the area are typically from the middle Devonian (387–382 Ma) Windom shale member of the Moscow Formation.
During the middle Devonian, North America and Europe formed a large landmass at the Tropic of Capricorn. Along the Eastern half of North America, mountains rose as the Acadian orogeny was underway, with the proto-African Plate converging with the North American plate.
West of the collision zone, the earth’s crust flexed downward, and the ocean filled the deepening depression. Western New York submerged beneath tropical seas, and the middle Devonian rocks were deposited in this Catskill Basin, westward of the rising Acadian mountains.
Fossils: Our group found trilobites, brachiopods, crinoids, rugose corals, bryozoans, and gastropods. We were on the lookout for rare, armored plates and bone fragments from armored jawless fish (ostracoderms) and jawed fish (placoderms), but no one spotted these.
Packing list:
Rock hammer
Small sledge hammer
Cold steel chisels
Pry bars
Safety goggles
Sturdy, closed-toed shoes
Work gloves
Bucket
Kneeling pad
Rain gear or a hat and sunscreen, depending on the season (hard hats not required)
Word to the wise: If it has rained recently or is raining when you go, be prepared to get very muddy. The ground was very slippery when I went. You must listen to the safety talk before you can dig.
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